Reflecting on the Pittsburgh Attack One Year Later

The following is my cover story in the October 31, 2019 edition of the Philadelphia Jewish Link about the first anniversary of the deadly shooting in a Pittsburgh synagogue:

Reflecting on the Pittsburgh Attack One Year Later

When a gunman armed with an assault rifle and several handguns entered the Tree of Life - Or L’Simcha Congregation in Pittsburgh at 9:50 a.m. on Saturday, October 27, 2018, and began shooting while shouting anti-Semitic slurs, the lives of countless people changed forever.

For the families of the eleven congregants who tragically lost their lives on that fateful day, the pain is still palpable. For the worshipers and law enforcement personnel who sustained serious injuries, the memory of what happened is still fresh. For anyone who has ever prayed in a synagogue or other House of Worship, the realization of what happened in Pittsburgh is at the forefront of their minds.

As we mark one year since what is perhaps the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in the history of the United States, in which a congregation was instantly transformed into a combat zone, the question is, now what? Where do things stand one year later?

According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), American Jews continue to face significant threats one year after the attack. Since the deadly shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue, at least twelve white supremacists have been detained by law enforcement for their alleged roles in terrorist plots, attacks or threats against the U.S. Jewish community.

Moreover, white supremacists have targeted properties that house Jewish institutions more than fifty times since the Pittsburgh attack. The ADL Center on Extremism found that there were twelve occasions of vandalism using white supremacist symbols and thirty-five distributions of white supremacist propaganda. We have also seen white supremacists demonstrating outside AIPAC offices and Israeli consulates. In the first half of 2019, there were approximately 780 anti-Semitic incidents throughout the United States.

Yet, despite the rise in anti-Semitism and the reverberations of the Pittsburgh attack one year later, there is a sense of optimism and the recognition that the Jewish community must endure, as well as a need to continue reflecting on what occurred.

Adam Hertzman, the Director of Marketing at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, recalled gathering with his Federation colleagues shortly after the news broke that there was an active shooter situation at Tree of Life and working diligently to organize and bring people together in the aftermath of the attack.

“We didn’t know all of the details yet, but my first reaction was the reaction of every Jew to hearing something like this – ‘oy,’” Hertzman told the Philadelphia Jewish Link. “I was in work and help mode, and I don’t know that I thought a lot about it until I got home that evening and hugged my kids. It was awful. I think my first reaction was shock.”

Citing the Federation’s good working relationship with the various Jewish agencies in Pittsburgh, Hertzman spoke about the collaboration among the various organizations.

“It was a seamless collaboration between JFCS, JCC, and Federation trying to notify all of the other synagogues and Jewish organizations and to make sure they had their security lockdown procedures in place. We worked on setting up a place for the families of the victims to wait that was comfortable for them and away from the media, on trying the keep the community calm at a time when there was understandably high anxiety, and on trying to get information out as quickly as possible in a sensitive way.”

One of the most incredible things to happen following the Pittsburgh attack was that people from all over the world and from all walks of life essentially came together to offer all kinds of assistance, whether it be financial, spiritual or physical, to the victims’ families and the greater Pittsburgh community.

For example, members of the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where a white supremacist opened fire and killed nine people in June 2015, traveled to Pittsburgh in order to spend time with the survivors of the synagogue attack and comfort them.

In addition, there was an interfaith prayer vigil held the night after the attack, where people of different faiths joined to remember the victims. Wasi Mohamed, the Executive Director of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh, electrified the crowd when he announced that the Islamic Center raised more than $70,000 for the Jewish community in the 24 hours since the shooting.

“We just want to know what you need,” he said during his remarks at the vigil. “If it’s people outside your next service protecting you, let us know and we will be there. If you just need someone to come to the grocery store because you don’t feel safe in the city, we’ll be there and I’m sure everybody in the room would say the same thing.”

Following his address, the video of which went viral, an additional $168,000 was raised.

“The outpouring of support from the entire city of Pittsburgh and from people around the world was really overwhelming and so meaningful to the Jewish community here,” Hertzman said. 

“The thing that strikes me in retrospect is although there’s certainly a rise in anti-Semitism around the world, I also feel like this is a time in history like no other time in the history of the world, in which there would be this overwhelming outpouring of support,” he added. “You can imagine a time 100 years ago, where if something like this happened to the Jewish community, the rest of the community would shrug. Knowing that the world has changed in that way really helps with the healing in Pittsburgh.”

There is no question that one year after the attack, members of the Jewish community in Pittsburgh are still healing. There are people whose struggles persist as they continue down what could be a very lengthy path to recovery.

“Healing is different for different people and isn’t a linear process,” noted Hertzman. “There are people who have really gathered strength from being around others and from all the support that we’ve gotten, and then there are people who haven’t recovered at all, and everything in between.”

“The unintended consequences of this horror are so incredibly positive and uplifting – something no one could have anticipated,” said Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life - Or L’Simcha Congregation. “People thrust together by this heinous act continued to find ways to help each other on a healing path. People discovered strength that they didn’t know they had, and some found new purpose in their lives. The evil intentions of one person continued to sprout positive acts in ways that one cannot imagine.”

“We will always be in the process of healing, for, unlike a physical wound, this wound never fully heals,” added Rabbi Myers. “Reminders of that horrific day surround us. Each day, we must integrate the trauma of that day into our beings. To emerge and engage in our new reality, we must develop the necessary tools we need to face the challenges that each day brings. I am fueled by two things – faith and hope.”

In addition to healing, there is also the question of rebuilding. That issue recently appeared to gain some clarity following an address by Tree of Life President Sam Schachner during Kol Nidre on Yom Kippur, when he announced to the congregants that the synagogue will proceed with rebuilding plans that reflect resiliency, strength, and community collaboration.

The building, which was home to three congregations who all lost members in the attack – Tree of Life, New Light Congregation, and Congregation Dor Hadash – has not reopened since the attack one year ago. Tree of Life has since promised to return to the building in a demonstration of its faith with a pledge to fight anti-Semitism and all types of discrimination.

“We are poised to become an incredible center for Jewish life in the United States,” said Rabbi Myers. “When we reopen, and we most certainly will, I want the entire world to say, ‘Wow. Look at what they have done.’ To do anything less disrespects the memory of our 11 martyrs.”

While describing the plan to eventually reopen the synagogue, Barb Feige, Tree of Life’s Executive Director, stated that Tree of Life will be patient and deliberate about planning its future. Immediately following the shooting, the primary focus was on the needs of the victims’ families and survivors. The plan took time to develop as the synagogue dealt with helping its congregants to heal as well as settling into their new temporary space in Rodef Shalom, and the new daily demands of dealing with investigators, insurers, the numerous requests and extensive outpouring of support from across the country and throughout the world.

“We are a resilient community,” said Schachner. “When something bad happens, we have three choices. We can either let it define us, let it destroy us, or we can let it strengthen us. We will not let this attack destroy us. And we will not let this attack define us as a congregation.”

“We will start by engaging in a rebuilding effort in a victim-centered, collaborative, sensitive and caring manner,” Schachner continued. “We will build a cooperative and collaborative space located on the current Tree of Life - Or L’Simcha site that brings together stakeholders in a shared environment. Our buildings are too old and damaged for a narrow, limited vision. We will create a place that is alive with a balance of the future and the past; a place that has the flexibility to change with the times.”

Before the attack last October that left the synagogue unsuitable for worship, the 60-year-old building had mostly outlived its usefulness and needed hundreds of thousands of dollars in deferred repairs. Prior to the shooting, Tree of Life was already working to expand its “metropolitan model,” where three congregations shared space, expenses, and programming under one roof, while retaining individual identities and assets.

“This model is now being broadened and we have developed a vision for what we’re calling a ‘Community Collaborative/Cooperative,’” said Feige.

This expanded model will include worship spaces for Tree of Life and other interested congregations, along with the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh and Chatham University – two organizations that have signed on to explore the collaboration – along with other community stakeholders interested in renovating and rebuilding with Tree of Life. “Having the Holocaust Center and Chatham share space with us would give us an educational component that we wish to provide as well,” Feige noted.

The vision plan also includes a memorial to the eleven lives lost in the attack.

“Our future is not about being the synagogue that was attacked, it is about being the synagogue that survived, thrived and remembered who we are,” said Schachner. “We will turn tragedy into triumph, loss into life and love. We will be resilient, and we will be strong.”

In conjunction with the one-year anniversary of the shooting, Governor Tom Wolf signed a proclamation declaring October 27, 2019, a day of remembrance and ordered state flags to fly at half-staff. The proclamation extends the city of Pittsburgh’s resolution declaring the day “Remember. Repair. Together. Day” statewide to include all Pennsylvanians.

“A year has passed, but I continue to carry sorrow for the victims and their families of this heinous attack,” said Governor Wolf. “We must honor them by remembering, and through our thoughts, prayers, and actions. Pittsburgh is a city of bridges, and so it is a fitting tribute to commemorate this occasion with a day of building bridges of understanding, welcome, and friendship.”

As the community rebuilds, Adam Hertzman noted the importance of Jewish institutions being vigilant and cognizant that there are people out there who might view the Jewish community as a target. He stressed the critical role that community security plays on a regular basis and remarked that security outside a synagogue or a school is not just about the building and the guard; it is also about communication and training. Hertzman observed that “Run Hide Fight” training actually saved lives during the Tree of Life attack because a number of the congregants were well-versed in the protocols and knew they needed to run away from the shooter and hide.

On the issue of general preparedness, Hertzman believes that “it’s incumbent on synagogues and Jewish organizations to reach out to each other and coordinate on what to do in the event of an emergency.”

Notwithstanding what took place in the Tree of Life synagogue on October 27, 2018, Hertzman considers Pittsburgh to be a safe haven for Jews.

“Despite the rise in anti-Semitism, Jewish Pittsburgh was one of the safest communities in the country before this attack, and frankly it’s still one of the safest communities.”

As we reflect on the lives that were cut short due to a senseless act of violence and ruminate on how the broader Jewish community was impacted by the anti-Semitic attack, we can all take solace in the fact that the healing persists, our faith is powerful, and the rebuilding is proceeding.